Ridable miniature railway

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Zooline Railroad's C.P. Huntington train.
St. Louis Zoo

A ridable miniature railway (USA: 'riding railroad' or 'grand scale railroad') is a ground-level, large scale model railway that hauls passengers using locomotives that are models of full-sized railway locomotives (powered by diesel or petrol engines, live steam engines or electric motors).

[edit] Overview

Typically they have a track gauge between 5 and 18 inches (127 to 458 mm), though both larger and smaller gauges are used.

These large model railroads are most often seen in urban parks or in commercial settings, such as amusement park rides.

The major distinction between a miniature railway and a narrow gauge railway is that miniature lines use models of full-sized prototypes. There are miniature railways that run on gauges as wide as 2 ft (610 mm), for example the Wicksteed Park railway. There are also narrow gauge railways running on extremely narrow track as small as 15 inch gauge or less, for example the Rudyard Lake Steam Railway, Perrygrove Railway and the Eaton Hall Railway: these are known as minimum gauge railways.

Typically in the UK miniature lines are operated as public heritage railways, though many private lines also exist, especially in the USA.

[edit] UK Miniature Railways

[edit] 20 in (508 mm) gauge

North Bay Railway, Scarborough, North Yorkshire

[edit] 18 in (457 mm) gauge

Heath Park Tramway, Cardiff website
Sundown Adventure Land, Retford, Nottinghamshire
Terrific Train, New Metroland, Gateshead, Tyne & Wear

[edit] 15 in (381 mm) gauge

Bure Valley Railway

Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway

Blackpool Zoo, Lancashire
Blenheim Park Railway, Oxfordshire
Bressingham Gardens, Norfolk
Bure Valley Railway Aylsham, England
Cleethorpes Coast Light Railway, Lincolnshire
Conwy Valley Railway Museum, Betws-y-Coed, in North Wales [
Coombe Martin Wildlife Park, Devon website
Craigtoun Miniature Railway, Craigtoun Park, St. Andrews
Eaton Hall Railway, Cheshire website
Evesham Vale Light Railway, Evesham Country Park, Twyford, Evesham, Worcestershire website
Gulliver's Land, Milton Keynes
Gulliver's World, Warrington, Cheshire
Haigh Country Park Railway, Greater Manchester
Heatherslaw Light Railway, Northumberland
Knowsley Safari Park, Prescot, Merseyside
Lakeside Miniature Railway, Southport, Merseyside
Lappa Valley Steam Railway
Lightwater Valley Themepark, Ripon, North Yorkshire
Longleat House Railway website
Markeaton Park, Derby website
Marwell Zoo, Colden Common, Hampshire
Oakwood Adventure Park, Narberth, Pembrokeshire
Paradise Park, Hayle, Cornwall
Paultons Park, Ower, Romsey, Hampshire
Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway, Cumbria
Rhiw Valley Light Railway, Manafon, Powys
Rhyl Miniature Railway, Clwyd
Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway, Kent
Saltburn Miniature Railway, Cat Nab, Cleveland
Sherwood Forest Steam Railway, Nottinghamshire
West Midlands Safari Park, Worcestershire
Windmill Farm Railway, Burscough, Lancashire
Wildlife Park, Cricket St Thomas, Chard, Somerset

[edit] 12¼ in (311 mm) gauge

Exbury Gardens Steam Railway, Beaulieu, Hampshire
Fairbourne Railway, Gwynedd
Hotham Park Railway, Bognor Regis website
Newchapel Railway, Horne, Horley, Surrey

[edit] 12 in (305 mm) gauge

Anglesey Model Village, Newborough
Ruislip Lido Railway, Greater London website

[edit] 10¼ in (260 mm) gauge

Wells and Walsingham Light Railway

Audley End Railway, Audley End, Saffron Walden, Essex website
Beale Park, Pangbourne, Berkshire website
Berkeley Light Railway, Gloucestershire website
Bickington Steam Railway, Trago Mills, Liverton, Newton Abbot, Devon website
Birchley Miniature Railway website
Brechin Castle Centre Railway, Haughmuir, Brechin
Bressingham Gardens, Norfolk
Brooklands Pleasure Park, Worthing, Sussex
Chichester & District Society of Model Engineers, Chichester, Sussex
Drayton Manor Park and Zoo, Staffordshire
Eastleigh Lakeside Railway, Hampshire website
Egerton Park Sportsground, Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire
Exmouth Express, Exmouth, Devon
Ferry Meadows Miniature Railway, Nene Valley Park, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire
Happy Mount Park, Bare, Morecombe, Lancashire
Hastings Miniature Railway, Hastings, Sussex
Isle of Mull Railway, Mull, Scotland
Kerr's Miniature Railway, West Links Park, Arbroath
Kirkby Green Light Railway, Sleaford, Lincolnshire (private with open days)
Knebworth Park Miniature Railway, Hertfordshire
Lions Mane Line Miniature Railway, Saville Brothers Garden Centre, Selby Road, Garforth, Leeds
Manor Railway, Ingfield Manor, Billingshurst, Sussex
Mortocombe Railway, Chilton, Oxfordshire website
Newby Hall Miniature Railway North Yorkshire
Paignton Environmental Park, Paignton, Devon
Paradise Wildlife Park, Broxbourne, Hertfordshire
Pettit's Animal Adventure Park, Reedham, Norfolk
Poole Park Miniature Railway, Poole, Dorset
Queens Park, Chesterfield, Derbyshire
Radwell Manor Railway, Radwell, Bedfordshire (closed)
Royal Victoria Country Park, Netley, Southampton, Hampshire website
Rudyard Lake Steam Railway, Rudyard, near Leek, Staffordshire
Saville Brothers Garden Centre, Garforth, Yorkshire
Smokey Oak Railway, Woodland Park, Brokerswood, Westbury, Wiltshire
Stapleford Miniature Railway, Stapleford Park, Leicestershire
South Downs Light Railway, Pulborough, Sussex
St. Anne's Miniature Railway, St. Annes-on-Sea, Lancashire
Sutton Hall Railway, Rochford, Essex website
Twycross Zoo, Leicestershire
Vanstone Woodland Railway, Vanstone Park Garden Centre, Codicote, Hertfordshire. website
Watford Miniature Railway, Cassiobury Park, Watford, Hertfordshire website
Wells and Walsingham Light Railway, Wells-next-the-Sea, Norfolk
Wells Harbour Railway, Wells-next-the-Sea, Norfolk website
Weymouth Bay Miniature Railway, Lodmoor, Weymouth, Dorset

[edit] 9½ in (241 mm) gauge

Downs Light Railway, Colwall, Near Malvern, Worcestershire
Clevedon Fields Miniature Railway, Salthouse Fields, Somerset
Hall Leys Park, Matlock, Derbyshire
Lakeshore Railroad, South Marine Park, South Shields, Tyne & Wear
Barking Park Miniature Railway, Barking, Essex (Now Closed). Being relaid in 7.25" gauge, 2008.

[edit] 9 in (229 mm) gauge

Brogdale Horticultural Trust, Faversham, Kent
Torry Hill Park (private miniature railway), Near Frinsted, Kent

[edit] 8¼ in (210 mm) gauge

Brambridge Park Garden Centre, Eastleigh, Hampshire

[edit] 7¼ in (184 mm) gauge

Barking Park Light Railway: Due to open mid-July
Beer Heights Light Railway, Devon
Bekonscot Light Railway
Bentley Miniature Railway website
Conwy Valley Railway Museum, Wales
Dobwalls, Forest Railroad, Cornwall (closed)
Echills Wood Railway, Kingsbury Water Park, Warwickshire website
Fancott Miniature Railway, Bedfordshire website
Frimley Lodge Miniature Railway website
Great Cockcrow Railway
Halton Miniature Railway Society, Runcorn, Cheshire
Leyland Society of Model Engineers, Lancashire website
Little Orchard Railway, Suffolk Website.
Malden and District Society of Model Engineers Ltd website
Mortocombe Railway, Chilton, Oxfordshire website
Moors Valley Railway, Hampshire website
National Railway Museum, York
Swanley New Barn railway, Kent
Weston Miniature Railway, Somerset website
Weston Park Railway, Shropshire website
Willow Wood Railway, Stowupland, Suffolk.

[edit] 5 in gauge (127 mm)

Hove Park Railway (Website)
Leyland Society of Model Engineers, Lancashire website
Strawberry Line - part of Avon Valley Country Park
Malden and District Society of Model Engineers Ltd website
Tonbridge Model Engineering Society

[edit] 3½ in gauge (89 mm)

Leyland Society of Model Engineers, Lancashire website
Malden and District Society of Model Engineers Ltd website
Tonbridge Model Engineering Society